Estimating the effect of assumed initial damage to the hydraulic stability of pattern-placed revetments on dikes using finite element modeling

Initial damage, caused by previous wave loading or other events, might affect the hydraulic stability of pattern-placed revetments. Three common types of damage are considered in this study. The effect of this assumed initial damage on the hydraulic stability and failure probability of revetments is quantified using a FEM model. This model is...

The effect of interactions between failure mechanisms on the reliability of flood defenses

Structural reliability analysis often considers failure mechanisms as correlated but non-interacting processes. Interacting failure mechanisms affect each others performance, and thereby the system reliability. We describe such interactions in the context of flood defenses, and analyze under which conditions such interactions have a large impact...

Integrated urban flood design in the United States and the Netherlands

Spatial design integrates social, cultural, economic, and political perspectives with natural site conditions and man-made construction to plan for sustainable urban development. The current flood-risk-related challenges induced by climate change place pressure on designing cities in which both natural and man-made conditions can be imbalanced....

Understanding Levee Failures from Historical and Satellite Observations

Flood defense systems are critical in protecting against catastrophic events which often lead to significant damage, fatalities or substantial socio-economic and environmental impact. Even though levees form a significant part of the existing flood defense systems, there is a limited knowledge of the different levee behavior processes and the...

Integral Design of Multifunctional Flood Defenses: Multidisciplinary Approaches and Examples

Multifunctional flood defenses protect areas against flooding, but<br/>serve other functions as well. Although these types of defenses<br/>can be seen almost everywhere, they pose special technical and<br/>governance challenges.<br/><br/>This book is about a unique interdisciplinary research program<br/>developed to tackle some of the issues...

Economic optimization of coastal flood defense systems

Coastal flood defense systems can consist of multiple lines of defense. In case of a system with a front and a rear defense (e.g. a storm surge barrier and levees), the front defense can improve the reliability of the rear defense by reducing the load on this rear defense. This paper develops a framework in order to assess whether including...